Baylor vs. UC Hastings Vs American Vs Miami Forum

[tirkman]

So I am from Virginia, stayed in state for undergrad at George Mason and am now looking on for law school this upcoming fall but am unsure what to decide. my stats aren't great, 3.45 gpa with a 158 LSAT. I've already taken the LSAT 3 times going from 147 the first time, 151 the second, to 158 the third. So far I've been accepted into Baylor (just got it yesterday and don't know if im getting a scholarship yet but if i do im guessing it wont be much), UC hastings (15k a year), miami (25k a year), and american (30k a year). Since i wont be going into any of the elite schools, do you all think it might just be best to choose an option that gets me into the least amount of debt? If i go to miami or american my family will be able to cover the tuiton that isn't convered by the scholarship while i probably would be in debt if i go to UC hastings or baylor. Would it be better to go to the lower ranked schools with no debt and if so what do you all think of miami vs American. or if you think uc hastings/baylor is a better option let me know. i appreciate all answers in advance.

[tinyvessels]

Yeah, I would definitely stick to the options where you would be graduating with the least amount of debt possible, which would be Miami or American. Baylor and UC Hastings are not worth any significant debt AT ALL. Where do you want to work though? Because you seemed to have applied across the board. Or are you okay with settling down wherever you attend law school?

[cavalier1138]

Yeah, your regional and career goals are important here. But in general, none of the above without a full ride.

[UVA2B]

Goals for the degree matter so much here. None of the options do very well in placing in the typically desirable jobs. And total debt needs to be calculated to give the full picture.

Come back with more info about your geographic and job placement goals, along with total cost of attendance (I would argue to include your parents' contribution since these are traditionally bad options, but you know better than I do about potentially burning large piles of your parent's money on the good old game of coin flips for jobs).

[tirkman]

well in terms of regional goals with working, i have lived in northern virginia in the DC area my whole life so I couldn't say anywhere else with certainty since this is the only place i have lived. So given that American is the option that makes more sense. For some more application information I have also applied to George Mason, University of Maryland, and Washington and Lee. Mason has waitlisted me and i havent heard back from the other 2 yet, but my expectation is that UMD will accept me and washington and Lee will probably waitlist me. I also feel like I have a decent chance of getting off Mason's waitlist and if i do i could just go there and pay in state tuiton which is 25k a year. So i could just choose to go to american and then go to mason instead if they end up taking me. but anyway american would be about 23k a year tuition wise and miami would be the same. In terms of other costs of livings, i would guestimate miami would be a little cheaper than DC but either way I won't have to go in debt for that. In terms of why did i apply to a bunch of out of state options across the country it's mostly because I've lived in the same place pretty much my whole life and also did my undergrad here, so the idea of getting to be in Miami or san francisco for 3 years sounds appealing. But if i went to miami, would i really be screwed in terms of getting a job in virginia compared to going to american? I dont expect to be making 160k on day one out of law school and would be fine in working in a smaller (less than 10 people) type of firm in virginia and gain the experience to one day own my own practice.

[Johann]

if youre fine working in a small practice and then starting your own place, american or miami at $0 COA are fine. it's probably easier to network in virginia with an american degree, but most of the reason miami has low placement outside of fla is self selection.

lean american. but if youre dying to get away for 3 years and need to do that for yourself, miami is a fine choice.

[UVA2B]

It seems you haven't put nearly enough thought into this decision, or at least not the right kind of thinking. If you want to be in VA, and you're interested in small firm work, you need to do everything you can to limit cost at a school like Mason or W&M. That means a full ride with small cost of living. Before you make any more decisions, go to the thread at the top of choosing a law school subforum that provides a COA calculator. Use that honestly with yourself for all your options. Now remember that you'll be debt-financing those amounts (or at least that's how it seems from your post). Next consider how you'll pay that debt off with a small firm salary of hopefully $45k.

You're paying too much for all of these options and you won't have a way to pay off that debt. These schools at these prices would be financially ruinous if you went to any of these schools.

Please realize this debt is very real and you have no way of escaping it if you even manage to reach your modest goals. Don't make that short-sighted mistake.

[UVA2B]

if youre fine working in a small practice and then starting your own place, american or miami at $0 COA are fine. it's probably easier to network in virginia with an american degree, but most of the reason miami has low placement outside of fla is self selection.

lean american. but if youre dying to get away for 3 years and need to do that for yourself, miami is a fine choice.

I'd accept American at $0 COA, but OP is nowhere near that figure right now. But Miami is indefensible if OP wants to be in VA long-term.

[Johann]

he just said his parents would pay the remainder of his tuition. thats $0 COA. no debt. hes in the same boat as a full ride as in the price to HIM is 0. please actually read people's OPs and TRY to give personalized advice.

[UVA2B]

he just said his parents would pay the remainder of his tuition. thats $0 COA. no debt. hes in the same boat as a full ride as in the price to HIM is 0. please actually read people's OPs and TRY to give personalized advice.

What about that $23k/yr in tuition? Did that just disappear from your reading?

[Johann]

if i go to miami or american my family will be able to cover the tuiton that isn't convered by the scholarship while i probably would be in debt if i go to UC hastings or baylor.

[UVA2B]

if i go to miami or american my family will be able to cover the tuiton that isn't convered by the scholarship while i probably would be in debt if i go to UC hastings or baylor.

Fair enough, I didn't look closely enough at OP, and was responding based on the follow-on post, which wasn't that clear.

Agreed that American for those goals is defensible, although I still take some issue with parents shelling out six figures for it. Horrible investment, but that's not my family.

[beforethelaw]

You said you're from VA, but are you set on staying there? If you think there's any chance you'd be ok with living in South Florida, then I say Miami easily. American gives you like a 45% chance of becoming a lawyer.